Your help needed for fair election

Sep. 19, 2013

Written by

Delbert Hosemann

Secretary of State

Over the last several weeks our agency has been inundated with calls regarding the mayoral election. The reports are troubling, and a new election was has been ordered by a judge who reviewed and discarded the first electoral process. A circus atmosphere surrounded the election and its trial aftermath. It has reflected poorly, and I believe inaccurately, on the citizens of Hattiesburg.

On Tuesday, you will have the opportunity to elect your mayor. While our agency is not the election police, we will have observers in every Hattiesburg voting precinct on Election Day from the time they open to the time they close. Our agency personnel also will be present when the votes are counted Tuesday evening, including the review and counting of affidavit ballots by your election commissioners.

We are working closely with your local district attorney, who has been very responsive to our agency. Any voting irregularities will be immediately forwarded to both District Attorney Patricia Burchell and Attorney General Jim Hood. We also will be working closely with your local media. There is no better disinfectant than the bright light of the press to curb voting irregularities, and I appreciate their coverage thus far.

Our agency has provided training for the special election to your municipal election commissioners. We are in constant contact with your deputy municipal clerk and election commissioners. Poll workers and bailiffs are being trained by the commissioners. However, it is important to remember city elections are run by the city. State law does not grant our office the authority to conduct the election. Ultimately, the outcome of your mayoral race lies with the citizens of the City of Hattiesburg, from the voters, to poll workers, to the municipal election officials.

I encourage you to rise above the negativity, rumor, innuendo and allegations. Your main focus should be the main weapon we possess in governance, your vote.

The City of Hattiesburg is the fourth-largest city in the state, with an operating budget of over $51 million. The Hub City has been ranked among the 50 fast-growing markets in America and one of the Top 20 best small cities in the nation. You have a vibrant regional medical community and one of the finest and fastest-growing universities in the state. You have earned, and deserve, the most qualified candidate to guide your city for the next four years. Study the candidate’s positions. Make an educated vote at the polls. And most importantly, go vote. If you do not vote, do not complain about the election, or its eventual outcome.

The secretary of state’s office in Jackson will also be fully staffed for the special election. If you have any questions prior to, or during, the election, I urge you to contact your local municipal clerk’s office, municipal election commissioners or the secretary of state’s toll-free election hotline at (800) 829-6786. I request your help in conducting a free and fair election. Many of your fellow citizens have sacrificed, and today risk their lives, to allow you the freedom to do so.